Student: José Martínez Hernández e-mail: jomarhe5@alumni.uv.es

English Philology. First cicle, first course.

English Theatre XIX & XX Centuries Group B ( evenings ).

Play: Abortion 1914 by Eugene Gladstone O'Neill ( also in second paper )

The main character is Jack Townsend, a better-off, student of a large eastern university in the United States. He is portrayed as a caring, well educated in all senses, good looking and fine chap, admired by the rest of his mates and loved by the girls. But later on truth proves to be slightly different than thought, when he starts feeling remorseful as he earlier did not face his responsabilities.

John Townsend.

His father. He is a good father that tought his son to come to him in order to share his problems. On the other hand, he is someone that despises the fact that his son got involved with a young woman that was hardly the class his son should be accustomed to associate with.

Evelyn Sands.

Jack Townsend's fiancee. A naive good student girl, in love with his boyfriend that is about to marry him, and that in spite of Jack evasive attitude does not suspect what he hides from her.

Joey Murray.

A machinist. Brother of the deceased pregnant lady, that although she is one of the more important characters, in this play is only a reference.Joey is the messenger of bad news and the voice of Jack's conscience, a voice Jack tried not to hear.

The plot is that Jack is engaged with his fiancee, but has had an affair with another girl, she got pregnant, and he asked his father for money to give it to her, as she has no money, she is working class. Jacks prefers not to hear from her again, as that represent a past that would be better hidden. During the abortion she dies, and his brother comes with a gun get even with him, but in the end he goes as he tells him he is going to the police station, then he grubs the gun and shoots himself.

"Abortion" is , talking about settings, the play of traditional theatre. Indoors, closed space, just three walls and the public. Nor many nor different, complicated settings.

The sound that accompanies the plays are as well a feature that evolves. In " Abortion the fanfare increases its volume as increases the tension of the plot.

The use of irony although minor in this play it is present as a mild and naive irony coming from a child calling a huge guy " poor delicate fragile butterfly ". Also the chaps are singing " for his a jolly good fella " while he feels so low that is about to commit suicide.

A main feature is the difference between classes, shown by some sentences " she is working class ", " keep the good name of your family ", etc...

Antoher subject is human nature... "..We have retained a large portion of the original mud in our make-up..." and ".. you are responsible for the MR hyde as well as for DR. Jekyll inside you ..."

Funny enough there are not remarks about religion in" Abortion", when abortion has an obvious and direct link with religion.

It could be remarkable that there is a precedent; Joey came asking for Jack and when he is told he gets nervous and nobody knows yet why. The spectator knowledge does not go along the play.

There is a contrast between everything going ok and things starting to go wrong.

The sound of the fanfare increases as increases the rythm of the plot.

As in many other of O'Neill plays the character can not get rid of the past. And is defeated by it.